


Sixty Six

by NightDoktor



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Aris is a huge dork, Cruise Ships, F/M, M/M, Minho Ships It, Minho gets an unlimited drinks package, Minho is hardstuck Diamond, Minho wants Teresa but won't admit it, Newt crushes on Thomas, Newt is a League of Legends player, Newt likes gin, Teresa just wants to get drunk a lot, Thomas is too pure, Thomas will drink anything, he has no idea what's going on, there will be smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-07
Updated: 2018-02-11
Packaged: 2019-03-15 02:00:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,633
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13603197
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightDoktor/pseuds/NightDoktor
Summary: Newt, Thomas, and Teresa get dragged along by Minho on a university holidays cruise trip. With an unlimited drinks package, what could go wrong?Minho and Teresa begin scheming.Fic title from a song I was listening to when brainstorming.





	1. Oh, come on, Newt!

**Author's Note:**

> Title from: https://open.spotify.com/track/5fY6XDlzCVIO9ivj6uLruM?si=bGjetVuvTDuS1Ezw98M4yQ

Newt was entirely unremarkable, as far as he was concerned. 19 years old, five feet eleven, drives a 3rd hand Honda, attends university in his home city, studying cybersecurity. Which was why he was wondering what on earth could have possessed him to be surrounded by his 3 closest friends, entirely remarkable people.

Minho was the son of two of Gladesville’s most successful lawyers, had outstanding marks in his law courses and was set to top their group in the degree. He was also very athletic, competing in the university’s track team each year, and placing top 3 consistently.

Teresa on the other hand, wasn’t so legally inclined. Instead, she was one of the top Medical undergraduates in the university, fast tracking into being headhunted by research institutions as soon as she graduated. Specialising in neurology, she was definitely out of the ordinary with her intelligence and success so far.

Thomas, on the other hand, was different. He didn’t major in any rare, hard field, or excel in any one particular thing. No, he lived on his own, worked at a local bar and balanced university, studying a Business degree, and he was thinking of leaning into advertising; he was very persuasive. There were government assistances involved, but he never spoke of that. Instead, he was always upbeat, determined to succeed in whatever laid in front of him, and did so with vigour. Three weeks after he had started, Thomas got promoted to Supervisor. He was grinning about it for weeks.  
And that slightly lopsided smile. His doe brown eyes, that deep brown hair. His broad shoulders that Newt loved to hold onto whenever his Tommy grabbed him into hug.  
Thomas was very attractive, driven, and Newt was very gay.

-

The four were currently nearly passed out in the downstairs section of the second library on campus, the other one being slightly larger, yet the lower levels perpetually reeked of photography chemicals as the art majors practically lived in the dark rooms. So, they tended to prefer this one.

The last exams of the semester were done, and oddly enough, they had shared one mathematics class, Minho and Thomas for an accounting prerequisite, Teresa and Newt for core courses.

“Fuck that exam with a rusty fucking pitchfork.” Teresa cursed, a rare moment of doing so. Newt raised an eyebrow, and regarded his friend. Her black hair was splayed all over her face, having pulled it free of the harsh ponytail she kept it in for the exam, her glacial blue eyes peering out from the strands.  
“It wasn’t that difficult though, just the questions involved extensive working. Typical though, coming from Professor Janson though. I don’t particularly like the git.” Newt sighed, deciding to sprawl all over the couch, head coming to rest just beside Thomas’ leg.  
The owner of the leg smiled softly at his friend, blond hair even messier than usual, eyes such a dark honey brown that in normal light, appeared black.  
Thomas’ heart squeezed a little at the sight, and gave into an impulse to flick Newt’s nose, who yelped and scooted away, towards Minho.  
“Min help, he’s attacking me!”  
Minho sighed, reached over and flicked Thomas in the arm.  
“Children, please. I’m trying to unwind.” Minho closed his eyes, and tried to ignore the indignant cursing of his two friends next to him, and the low grumbling of Teresa, the early warning sign she was going to turn into a bobcat.  
“Min, you’re like 4 months older than us. Get off, ya git.” Newt growled.  
“Yeah, what he said!”  
“Thanks, Tommy.”

-

Hours after the gang had cleared their belongings, and instead decided to slump in the local café, ordering coffees and various cakes to rejuvenate themselves.  
Minho was busy clacking away at his laptop, when his eyes suddenly lit up and his mouth curved into a wicked smile.  
Newt knew that look.  
“Whatever devious plan you’re concocting Min, I’m not doing it. Shuck off.”

Minho whined. “But Newwwt~…”  
“Okay, hang on,” Thomas intervened, getting up to see what Minho was looking at, “it can’t be that bad. Just expensive, even with the discount.”  
“Tommy, it’s almost like you’ve never met this shank before.” Newt yawned, crossing his bad leg over the other for support, but making it look as regal as possible.  
“Hey, this could be alright. Show them, Min!”

Minho swung his laptop around, and found a last-minute cruise liner deal going from Singapore through to the Philippines, and stopping at South Korea.  
“Here’s the plan. My parents have been bugging me to take a holiday for a long while. I say I show them the price of a full priced trip with these exact stops, and then I use the leftover dosh to fund you guys with a gap on the end.”  
“As utterly amazing as that sounds, I don’t feel comfortable with you lying to your parents, Min.” Newt sank back into his chair, eyeing his Asian friend closely.  
“Oh, please. They would pay for triple. Instead, I’ll tell them I’d be absolutely shattered if I couldn’t bring you, I’ll mention Newt, because they love you for some reason,” he pointedly ignored the British cursing in his ear, “and we should be good as ever.” Minho clapped his laptop shut, glancing at Teresa, who shrugged, smiling.  
Newt pretended not to notice the pink on his cheeks as he looked away from her.

Minho clapped his hands together. “Alright friends, we’re off to Singapore!”  
Newt groaned.  
Teresa perked up.  
Thomas paled as he realised he needed time off work.

-

A week later, Minho bugging his parents, Newt telling his aunt that he’d be away, Teresa cashing in several favours at her café, and Thomas begging his boss for time off, they all met at the airport, and began handing out tickets and the itinerary.  
“Why are we here so buggin’ early?” Newt growled, still picking sleep residue from his eyes.  
“It’s so we’re not wasting most of the day when we arrive, Mister Sleep All Day!” Minho informed him, all too cheerfully for the blonde, who sighed.  
“You’re insufferable, Min.”  
“Alright,” Minho continued, pointedly ignoring Newt, “so the flight is approximately 8 hours, and we’re in economy plus. So at least we can recline the chairs back more than normal, and we’re not in a crowded part of the plane. Newt and Thomas, you’re on the end, and because Teresa isn’t that great on planes, she figured seeing things out the window would help.”  
Newt shrugged, he could understand that. The opportunity to see what was going on usually helped in some cases.  
They queued up for bag drop with their luggage, and after an eternity, managed to pass through to the security checkpoint, where they emptied out all of their belongings in their pockets on to trays, and Newt emptied his laptop into a separate tray, and his backpack on the other. Minho followed suit, and Thomas dumped his items on a tray behind him. Teresa passed this duty to Minho, who grumbled about it the whole time.

An hour later, the group found themselves at their wits’ end in the boarding lounge.  
Minho irritably checked his watch, then the boarding passes.  
“According to this, we should be taking off at 8am, and it’s ten past eight.” He hissed.  
Thomas simply stretched out more, appearing twice as long as he was. “Relax bud. We’ll get there around the time we are meant to. It’s a break, relax!”  
Newt’s own anxiety around the situation deflated from Thomas’ words, and he relaxed in his seat, refusing to cast a glance at the brunette, lest he see the tiny smile he was trying to hide.

Twenty minutes later, they’d filed onto the plane, and the quartet had half a row to themselves, with the aisle next to them.  
Teresa practically had her face glued to the window, Minho was trying to explain what was going on, and Thomas was exchanging amused expressions with Newt, who was on the aisle seat.  
He had to physically restrain himself from grabbing at Thomas’ hand, and winced when he didn’t quite succeed, his hand twitching.  
Damn Thomas noticed, of course he would. He always knew when Newt wasn’t okay, and sometimes Newt cursed him for it. This was one of those times. How would he react if he knew the truth? Tommy was way too nice for his own good, and he didn’t want to break up this amazing, close-knit group he’d found himself dragged into by Minho a couple years back, during the Orientation Week.

“Hey Newt, you good?” Thomas asked, eyes focused intently on the blonde who shrank into himself slightly.  
“Yeah, good!” He squeaked, cursing himself for the sound, scrunching his eyes in exasperation. _Great going, keeping this to yourself!_ He hissed internally, wishing that Minho wasn’t so avid in winning over Teresa, and had arranged them differently.  
He was cut from his musing when Thomas gently grasped his hand, and gave him a grin.  
“Don’t worry Newt, these things are safe as anything!” Thomas reassured him, patting Newt’s hand with his free one.  
Newt tried very hard to ignore how Thomas’ larger hand held his own, and how it relaxed him to the point where he was thinking solely about the contact, which caused him to get antsy again.  
_Take off will be the longest 10 minutes of my life._ He moaned, wanting to face palm at Thomas’ naivete and his own carelessness.

The plane took its sweet time taking off, and when it had, Newt twitched his hand regretfully, and Thomas released it, once more checking if he was okay.  
Newt pulled out his new set of Sennheiser headphones he’d been saving for months for, and gratefully tuned out, eventually falling asleep as the gentle turbulence rocked him to sleep.

-

Newt woke to Thomas’ hand on his shoulder, and doe eyes right in front of him. Newt startled, and remembered he was on the plane.  
Thanking Thomas loudly, (his earphones had active noise cancellation) and stowed his items away, to find people standing and stretching, ready to disembark.

“Are you alright Newt? You slept for the full 8 hours.” Minho leant over, with a curious Teresa also peering at him.  
Under pressure, Newt didn’t know what to do with his hands.  
“I may have been up all night playing League.”  
Minho groaned. “What, you just _had_ to bank more LP did you?”  
Newt bristled. “Hey, just because you’re hardstuck plat, you wouldn’t understand. Us Challenger players have to work for our ranks.”  
Minho growled. “Fucking Katarina mains.”  
“Fight me you piece of shit!” Newt hissed, ready to climb over Thomas- He froze, slowly removing his hands from Tommy’s leg.  
Whistling innocently, Newt got up and fell in line with the rest of the passengers, the remaining three following suit.

-

Baggage collected, the drowsy quartet wandered through Changi Airport, wondering at how pristine and well designed the place was, and how it managed to make a mundane service building so… Pleasing to look at.

Minho hailed a taxi from outside, and the driver happily gave them a rundown of the places they drove past, until they reached the harbour.  
Teresa tipped him for the detailed tour, and the driver got out to help unload.

After several heated discussions of where to go, and consulting emails, the group finally made it to the boarding lounge for the ship, and slumped down to wait to be issued their cards.  
Newt clutched onto his British passport, and made a show of how much nicer his was compared to the US passports the other 3 sported.  
“Oh get off it, Mr Crumpet.” Thomas snorted, flipping him off, but his eyes held nothing but mirth.  
“What should I call you lot then? Tea throwers?”  
Minho giggled, and covered his mouth with his hand. “You heard nothing.”  
The other three then laughed and poked fun, having never heard the guy giggle.  
After what seemed like hours, their group was processed, photos taken and cards issued, then guided onto the boat where their bags were taken by a concierge attendant to their rooms.

The quartet followed at a more leisurely pace, taking in the grand space of the liner.  
A double staircase occupied their immediate attention spiralling gracefully to the second and third floors, with a monstrously large statue of a galloping horse occupying the space between the flights of stairs. Glass surfaces glinted in every direction, and Newt was honestly stunned.  
Minho dragged them around the base of the stairs, and caught the elevator two stops up, and led them down the hallway.

“Okay, so according to this thing, our rooms are 204 and 205. I’ve got them to key our cards in both rooms, so we can get to each other if we need to. Teresa you’re with me, there’s separate beds in here. Off you go!” Minho chirped, opening the door and practically dragging Teresa in behind him.  
Newt glanced at Thomas beside him. “Should we be concerned?” He laughed, walking forwards and opening the door with his swipe card, and standing in the doorway, frozen.

“MINHO YOU FUCKER GET BACK HERE.” Newt yelled, his dark eyes alight with fury, slipping past Thomas, who was somewhat still out of it from the flight.  
He pulled their suitcases into the room, and eyed the room. A wardrobe, a decently sized bathroom, and a bench with a small sink, with a kettle and an assortment of tea and coffee.  
_What was Newt’s issue?_ Thomas glanced around, trying to see what was wrong, before he sat down on the lone bed in the room.  
_Oh._

Newt slipped his card through the reader, and opened the door, nearly knocking out Teresa in the process.  
Apologising to the flustered girl, he stormed into the room to find Minho laying back on his bed, smugly eyeing his blonde friend in such a state.  
“Liking your accommodation, Newt?”

Newt growled, and pulled Minho by his shirt in his anger.  
“What the fuck were you thinking?”  
Minho gently pried Newt’s hand off his shirt, mumbling something about his favourite shirt, and stood up.  
“They had a room of two singles, and a double, and I figured you two would be more suited to share it than Teresa, when she’s the sole girl with us.”  
Newt’s anger melted into something bordering acceptance, and he stepped back with a mumbled apology.  
“But hey, maybe this will help you two finally hook up!” Teresa interjected, shit-eating grin on her face.

Newt’s face paled, and he glanced between his friends as if one or both would betray him.  
“I can’t believe this!” He threw his hands up in the air, and left the room, to find Thomas on the bed, eyeing him nervously.

“Hey Newt, are you okay with this? If not, I’ll totally sleep on the floor, and-”  
“Oh bloody hell you’re not. I’m just as okay with it as you are, assuming… you are?” Newt trailed off at the end, watching Thomas carefully, who, contrary to Newt’s fears, simply grinned.  
“Sure, it’ll be like when we went camping, and your sleeping bag got flooded!” Thomas recalled, with no small amount of glee at the blonde’s misfortune.  
“Excuse me, we buggin’ agreed not to mention that disaster of a trip, thank you very much!” Newt jabbed a finger at Thomas, and then busying himself by planting his face in his suitcase, to hide the severe blush on his cheeks.

That night, the quartet had gone camping in a nearby national forest, at Minho’s insistence, and the tent that Newt was using leaked during the night, and thus he had to share with Thomas. Problem being, his sleeping bag had been drenched, and it was a winter’s night, so naturally they spooned. Newt had no idea that Thomas was good at cuddling, but needless to say he slept like a baby that night.

The boys changed into their formal attire, Thomas in a well-tailored black and white suit, while Newt opted for dress pants, a slim-cut white shirt, a black vest and a deep purple bow-tie.  
He caught himself staring at Thomas as he exited the bathroom, and looked away with heated cheeks.  
“Jeez Tommy, at least warn me before you come out looking that nice, bloody hell.”  
He wanted to tape his mouth shut. That way he wouldn’t say stupid shit like that.  
What he didn’t realise, was Thomas was staring with wide eyes and Newt sitting on the bed, legs crossed, looking all the part, his hair even brushed and kept somewhat controlled.  
The brunette recovered, and smiled. “Hey, at least warn me before you pick an outfit better than mind. Jeez, cybersecurity nerds aren’t meant to look better than bartenders!” Thomas mock whined, opening the door.  
“Shall we?”

The two exited the room, pocketing their ship cards in their pockets and waiting for the other half of the group, who soon came out.  
Minho was dressed very similarly to Thomas, but his suit was a deep grey, rather than the pitch black Thomas wore.  
Teresa on the other hand, was stunning. Her hair was curled slightly at the ends, ears adorned with simple crystals, and a long, slim fitting blue and silver dress.  
Newt and Thomas’ mouths dropped, and Teresa did a small spin.  
“Newt, you like boys, stop staring so much.” Newt closed his mouth and flipped off Minho, while Thomas blinked.  
“You do?”  
Newt’s heart dropped, and it was then that he’d never gotten around to telling him, just assuming he’d known. Defensively, he stared into Thomas’ eyes.  
“Yeah, you don’t?  
Thomas laughed, waving him off. “I just had no idea. And yes, I do. Both, that is. Can we get moving, please?” He whined at the end, pushing them all along.  
Internally, Newt sighed and tried to beat his steady heart. At least he had a chance, right? Curse that suit. It was NOT helping at all.

-

The restaurant was just as stunning as the foyer; a dais centred in the room hosted a beautiful grand piano, (Newt had to be held back before he went up and rubbed his face on it) the tables scattered in a swirl pattern around it, and behind lay a huge glass window, showing the rear of the ship.  
The dinner proceeded with many courses, and the talented pianist in the centre of the dais pumping out a mix of classical and more jazz inclined pieces, making the ambience more than pleasant.

Thomas was up getting a third helping of ice cream, and Teresa was not far behind him, whining about being “ditched with the stupid naysayers”, referring to Newt and Minho, who preferred the tiramisu.  
“You know, I’m very sure Thomas is nuts about you.” Minho leant forward, speaking low.  
Newt choked on his tiramisu, and placed his spoon down with more force than necessary. Glancing at Thomas, making sure his 6th sense of Newt hadn’t activated, and hissed at Minho.  
“The bloody hell are you talking about shank?”  
Minho eyed his friend knowingly. “I’ve known you since high school you dolt. I’ve known him for longer. Remember on the plane? I know well and true you’re more than okay with flying, you even like it. Yet Thomas was fussing over you like a mother hen. He doesn’t with us.” Minho leant back, appearing to appreciate the piece the pianist was playing, as the other two returned.

Newt was in thought for the rest of the dinner, until it dawned on him that when they went back, he would have to sleep in the same bed as Thomas.  
Sleep. Same bed. Thomas.  
He felt sick. What if Thomas saw his nightmares? He excused himself from the table, and made a beeline for the top deck, where he slumped against the railing, eyeing off the fading horizon, lighting up the sea a brilliant orange, a gently stirring bed of fire opal.

Newt was so captivated he’d momentarily forgotten his plight, until someone leant against the railing, making a show of checking his nails.  
“You know, you scared us running off like that. What’s gotten into you?” Thomas leant backwards, trying to catch Newt’s eyes.  
Newt pointedly tried not to look at Thomas. This light perfectly framed his face, accentuating the chocolate brown of his hair, and his _eyes_ were gorgeous.  
“I’ve had night terrors for several years. When I was small, I’d been chased up a tree by bullies in school, taunting me for my name. They’d become violent after I fought back one day, and I scaled a tree in fear. While up there, my foot slipped, and I landed wrong.” He lifted his bad leg, and gingerly put it back down.  
Thomas’ eyes softened and he sighed.  
“I’d hate for you to have gone through that. If anyone tries now, I’ll put them in the ground. If you ever think you’re going to be thought of differently for things outside your control,” he paused to gesticulate wildly, “anything, then you’re wrong. You’re Newt, and I still love you to bits all the same.” Thomas finished, and gripped Newt in a hug, who yelped in surprise.  
  
_I still love you to bits._  
  
He cannot have meant that. No.  
Given all his time at university, after he’d come out during the end of high school, he hadn’t found anyone who wanted to date him. It was a sore point, and Newt tried to hide this from Thomas, who would, no doubt, try to make him feel better about that too, and he couldn’t handle that, especially from Thomas.  
Instead, he gently pulled away, and offered Thomas a small smile.  
“Thanks, Tommy. Let’s go get out of this stuffy getup, yeah?”

-

Listening to Minho should’ve been a mistake that the other three should’ve learnt from by now, but simply hadn’t.  
That night found them hogging a spa to themselves, and cashing in big time on the unlimited drinks plan Minho had snuck into the cruise package, unbeknownst to his parents.

Newt was very happily on his 8th gin and tonic, Thomas was eyeing off another type of dark ale, 6 schooners in, Teresa was drooling, staring at the big bottle of vodka the bartender was using, and Minho was sipping on his 6th martini.

“My friends, life is good!” Minho sighed, sinking into himself, very careful of his glass.  
Newt agreed, but couldn’t help the slow spread of drowsiness once more. He’d slept soundly on the plane, but had no sleep at all for a day or two beforehand, sick to the stomach of worry with spending this much time quartered with Thomas. He’d known Minho would stick to Teresa, as they always did. He had no idea how they weren’t dating yet.

He took his time finishing his drink, and by group consensus, they finished up and went to leave, but poor Newt was smaller than the other two boys, and had to be caught by Thomas before he slipped.  
Newt took all the time in the world to recover, too tipsy and enjoying Thomas’ arms too much to hurry.  
“Thanks, Tommy.” He mumbled, before gaining his balance back and they headed back to their rooms.  
After showering, the two boys stood beside each other, staring at the bed as if it was a dungeon boss they’d paired up to defeat.

“Okay, so I’ll probably want to be able to get up if something happens.” Newt began, exhaling at the prospect of Thomas knowing his mind more than most.  
“Or, if something does happen, I can catch you before you hit the deck,” Thomas countered, adding a cheeky "again," opening the sheets, and herding Newt into them, clambering in after, hitting the lights.

“G’night Newt.” Thomas’ eyes were drooping shut.  
“Night, Tommy.” Newt gripped onto his pillow tightly, not wanting to trust himself not to grab onto Thomas in his sleep.  
Instead, he listened to Thomas’ steady breathing, and eventually sleep claimed him too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had this idea bouncing around in my head for a while, on my neverending quest to calm the pain that was TDC.
> 
> This will be updated whenever I have inspiration for it, and it'll probably compete with NWTT, my other main fic I've got tumbling through my head.
> 
> Beware, more fluff coming. I'm going to drown you all in Newtmas.
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are greatly appreciated. GLHF!


	2. I'm not goin' on that buggin' thing!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Newt and Thomas work out what's going on in their heads, with some outside help.
> 
> Finally having enough, Newt decides to take matters into his own hands. Literally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be warned, the end of the chapter contains light smut.
> 
> Further chapters will definitely have smut involved, and I'll place a warning at the start of the chapter if it applies.
> 
> That out of the way, thank you for the comments and kudos that I've received, it's amazing! I hope you like this chapter!

Newt awoke with a pained yelp, sweat drenching him, and Thomas was awake moments later, grabbing Newt’s hands and catching his eyes.  
“Hey, it’s okay. I got you. You’re okay. Slow down your breathing, work on that. That’s it.” Thomas murmured, rubbing circles with his thumbs on the back of Newt’s hands.  
Newt took a time to calm, his breathing evening out and his eyes looking less terrified.  
Thomas, judging Newt was feeling better, released his hands and scooted back.  
“The tree?”  
Newt swallowed hard, and nodded. “Yeah.” He let out, as a whimper. He hated being weak, especially in front of Tommy.  
But, he didn’t seem to notice, and simply smiled.   
“Well, you’re here now. You overcame it, and you’re still fighting. And that’s what matters. You should probably shower, though.” Thomas said, as he crawled off the bed.  
“Good thing it’s only 10am anyway. Time to eat, I’m starving!” He declared, rifling through his suitcase.  
Even with the recent nightmare, it was all Newt could do not to snort. Instead, “Tommy, you’re always hungry,” he deadpanned.

-

Breakfast was a slow affair, most of them being sleepy from the late rise, with Newt making a beeline for the coffee machine, practically inhaling his first double shot then slowing down and enjoying the next one, right after the first.  
He turned, and caught Thomas and Minho staring.  
Caught like a deer in headlights, he clutched the mug to his chest. “My precious!”

-

Newt eyed the slide before him. Oh no.  
“You are NOT, I swear, Tommy, you are not making me go on that buggin’ thing- PUT ME DOWN YOU BLOODY GIT!”  
Thomas giggled in glee as he scooped up his more petite friend in a bridal carry, and began sprinting up the stairs, with Newt yelling to “release me, you peasant!”, meanwhile the other two were almost falling back into the pool, they were in hysterics, losing their minds over the scene before them.

Back at the top of the slide, Thomas placed Newt down and grabbed him in a bear hug before he could bolt.  
“I hate how you know me that well, Tommy.” Newt grumbled, going slack in Thomas’ grip.  
“Come on Newt. I’ll be with you the whole way, if you want.”  
Newt muttered something unintelligible, but pushed out of Thomas’ arms (albeit reluctantly, but he’d never admit it) and waited near the entrance to the slide.  
“You coming, or what Tommy?”  
Thomas broke out of his reverie, having been staring at Newt, clad only in board shorts.  
_What was that?_ He shook his head, and rushed up to Newt with a smile.  
“Let’s go!”  
The pair settled in the slide, with Newt in between Thomas’ legs – the situation making Newt extremely glad Thomas couldn’t see his face and the monumental sweep of red across his cheeks.  
Down they went, and Newt could swear until he was blue in the face that he did not clutch onto Thomas’ legs in mild terror as they banked around the first few sharp turns, but started whooping 2 turns in and laughing freely like a child as they shot into the small water pool at the base of the slide.  
“Okay, you got me. That was amazing.” Newt playfully hit Thomas’ shoulder as he extricated himself from the water.

“Hey, so you have fun in there, you two?” Minho called from the nearby main pool, Teresa floating gracefully by, her black hair billowing in the water, picturesque of majesty.  
But there were a few additions, a boy about his age, with sharp eyes, and very handsome features, next to a darker skinned girl, and a blonde girl who looked strikingly similar to Newt.

Newt froze, and stared at his female counterpart, trying to make words with his mouth, but instead sounding like a dazed seal.  
The girl, noticing, threw herself out of the pool with a grin splitting her features.  
“Well, well, well. Look what the tide washed in. Haven’t seen you in quite a while, _Newtie_!” She cooed, pinching at his cheeks.  
Newt slapped them away, and put his hands on his hips, Thomas slowly inching back, unsure of what was going on. (As per usual.)

Newt grabbed Thomas by the arm, reminiscent of a rattlesnake.   
“You’re not going anywhere, Tommy. If I have to put up with this bitch then so do you.” Newt grumbled, pouting more when the girl threw her head back and laughed.  
“So,” Thomas began, as Newt pulled him by the arm forwards, “how do you know Newt?”  
The blonde stifled her laughter, and cocked her head to the side.   
“I’m his cousin, but they say we were actually siblings. We grew up together, so I guess it’s near enough. I’m Sonya, and you must be…?”  
“Thomas!” he chirped, taking her hand. “Pleasure to meet you. I trust you’d be able to supply enough blackmail material to last me ten years?”  
Sonya’s eyes widened, then shook Thomas’ hand with vigour.  
“I like you. Come on, I’ll introduce you to Harriet and Aris!”  
“Oooooookay that’s enough, _Elizabeth_.” Newt growled, yanking on Thomas’ arm that he still had a vicelike grip on. “You wanna call me that, I ain’t afraid to play hardball.”  
Sonya laughed, and poked her tongue out at Newt. “Come on, let’s leave that aside, we haven’t seen each other in years!”  
Newt sighed, and smiled. “I guess. Bitch.”  
The cousins play fought on the way back to the pool, with a smiling Thomas still being gripped by the arm.

They reached the pool, introductions were made, and Thomas had to work out why it was that he felt hot shooting feelings running through him whenever Aris was gazing at Newt, which, was quite often. He couldn’t deny the other boy was attractive, in a way. He had a very easy-going attitude, smiled often which made his eyes crinkle a little, and his laugh was quite infectious.  
Thomas scooted closer to Newt, and pointedly tried not to look at Aris.

Then, the unexpected crashed into Thomas like a freight train.   
Aris was rather animatedly making out with Harriet, and the group made gagging sounds as they moved away, Thomas comically covering Newt’s eyes as if he were a small child.  
“Don’t look Newt, straight people!”  
Newt punched him, but moments later lost his composure and began to giggle uncontrollably.

Aris cleared his throat, and swam backwards, glancing between Newt and Sonya.  
“You’re related, you must be.”

Six claps resounded throughout the pool area as Thomas, Newt, Minho, Teresa, Harriet and Sonya slapped their foreheads.  
“ARIS!” Sonya roared, diving and shoving the boy under the water, appearing to be strangling him. Feeling pity, Newt dragged his cousin off the poor boy, and Aris arose gasping for air.  
“Hey, I’m oblivious, and sometimes don’t pay any attention to things, but no need to drown me!” He squawked, crossing his arms with a huff.  
“It’s perfect, one less idiot in my life.” Sonya returned, checking her fingernails.  
“Harsh.” Aris whined, glancing to Harriet for support, who simply shrugged and glanced off the ship. “What did I do?!” He moaned, sinking so just his eyes were above the water, blowing bubbles petulantly.

Teresa perked up, and started glancing around.  
“Uhh guys, isn’t it time for dinner real soon? Where is everyone else?”   
As it turned out, there were no other guests on the pool deck or the surrounds, to the group threw themselves out of the pool, and scattered to their rooms, agreeing to return to a more casual restaurant on the other end of the vessel.

Before Thomas could make it too far, Sonya pulled him aside with a finger to her lips, pointing at Newt animatedly arguing with Minho about pizza toppings and that pineapple had no place whatsoever on pizza, while Minho argued otherwise.  
“Thank fuck.” Thomas whispered to himself.

“What did you say?” Sonya cocked her head to the side, so eerily similar to Newt that Thomas had to suppress a shudder.  
“Nothing, just glad Newt doesn’t like pineapple on pizza.” Thomas explained, as if it were the simplest thing.  
“And,” she began, “why is that a good thing?”  
Thomas blinked.  
“Well, I wouldn’t want to be sharing a room with someone who enjoys that monstrosity, let alone sharing a bed.” He explained, before he realised what he said. “Which, we’re not sleeping together, we’re not a thing and if you thought-”  
Sonya put a finger on his lips, quietening him instantly, not being used to the contact.  
“And why is it such a big deal if you were?” She questioned, causing Thomas to swallow nervously.  
“I- I guess I’m confused about how I feel about him. I’ve never been in a relationship before so the line between loving someone close to me and actually _loving_ them are blurred to me.”

Sonya was thinking for a time, about the interactions between the boys.  
“I’ve known Newt an awful long time, Thomas. He hates being touched, he hates close proximity to other people. But you, you did those things multiple times to him today, and you’re not scratched to shit. He’s like a cat, honestly. Entitled, cute little shit that scratches you when he’s had enough.” Sonya chuckled, but then looked Thomas in the eyes with dead seriousness.

“He’s so into you it’s ridiculous. I can tell you’re very attached to him and care for him very much, but you need to work things out in that thick head of yours and make a move soon, or I’ll _make you_. Also,” Sonya said, turning away but throwing a look over her shoulder, “if you hurt him I’ll track you down and strangle you instead of shithead Aris.”

Thomas gulped.

Further ahead at the same time, Sonya was interrogating Thomas, Harriet gave a glance to Aris, who nodded furtively.  
Quickly grabbing Newt’s hand, he pulled him around a corner into a very quiet library.   
“What the fu-”  
Aris unknowingly mimicked Sonya, but hushing Newt with a hissed “SSHH!”

Newt opened his mouth a couple times, but settled on closing it instead of saying anything.  
Satisfied, Aris led him around the corner to a seating area, meant for reading.  
Grabbing a book for each of them, he opened it and then leant forward.

“Okay, so what’s going on between you and Thomas?” Aris turned a page in the book, eyes locked on Newt, who went beet red.  
“Uh, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”  
“Bullshit. Sonya’s told me a lot about you in the past couple years I’ve been going to school with her, and you’re letting Thomas do quite a bit that you’d, I quote, ‘Scratch the shit out of anyone else who tried,’ according to Sonya.” Aris countered, flipping another page.  
Newt went to argue, but found himself short of words.

Thomas had been inexplicably close to him in the past couple of days, going to far as to _carry_ him up the slide stairs.  
Newt hated physical contact in general, but had allowed Thomas to hug him, catch him (he’d been drunk in the spa, in his defence), and be carried. He found himself remembering how, when drunk and with no inhibitions, had rather enjoyed being held by his friend.

Friend. That concept was beginning to rapidly shift in his mind.  
“Okay, well, I’ve been on and off crushing on him pretty hard for about a year now,” Newt began, pretending to read his own book, “but I’ve never had the guts or the idea of how to approach him.”  
Aris nodded thoughtfully, humming in surprise as he ‘read’ something in his book, turning a page.

“Alright, the way I see it, Thomas is nuts about you, and likely has no idea. Like me, he’s oblivious as fuck. You should’ve seen the heart eyes he was giving you as you two left the slide! He was giving me death glares every time I was eyeing you off after that, trying to work out how similar you were to Sonya. In my defence, I never pay attention, and completely missed the part where she introduced you as her cousin. Anyway, he moved closer to you after, and it was rather adorable.” Aris went on to explain how Thomas was quite into him, after all.

“Well, fuck. Now what do I do?” Newt slumped in his chair, book held loosely in his hands.  
Aris leant over the table again, and grinned.  
“This is where my expertise comes in. Like me with Harriet, I was oblivious as fuck, and it took a chat not unlike this one from Sonya to knock some sense into me. I suspect she yelled at Harriet for hours as well, but here’s what you do…”

-

Thomas was rifling through his suitcase, and just as he’d gathered his things, turned to enter the bathroom, as Newt sped out, covered in just a towel, having forgotten his clothes.  
The boys collided, Newt going one way, Thomas the other, and the towel in between them.

They sat there, eyes glued to each other, before Thomas yelled out, covering his eyes and screaming on his way into the bathroom, yelling at Newt to cover himself, as he was not going to be a pervert.  
Newt sat, stunned, as he watched the normally calm and composed Thomas freak out like a girl.  
A grin slowly crawled across his face, dark eyes glinting with mischief.  
His earlier misgivings and fear were practically non-existent, after his chat with Aris, who had an experience similar to his, with his own girlfriend. Newt was determined he would claim Thomas as his own, one way or another, now he knew that one, he was definitely interested in the same sex, and specifically him, and he’d complimented Newt more times than he could count, and two, was very shy when it came to anything involving nudity.

Thomas, on the other hand, was leaning against the closed bathroom door, panting.   
_I just saw Newt naked. And I liked it. What. The. Fuck._  
He had to consider everything here, especially after his chat with Sonya. He liked being close to Newt. A lot. There was a lot more physical contact between them than there were between friends, even close ones like they were becoming. It was true, he hadn’t been overly close with Newt, but had been good friends at least. Now, things were changing quite fast, and Thomas wasn’t sure if he was keeping up.  
He was scared that he was falling quite hard for his blonde friend, and didn’t know what to make of it.  
Burying his face in his hands, he decided a quickie in the bathroom was going to help ease the tension in his mind, like any guy would.

Five minutes in, all his mind could conjure was Newt, naked and sprawled on the floor of their cabin, and what made it worse, he was hard, painfully so. Thomas abandoned the idea with a yell, and nearly slapped himself when Newt was calling out, worried.  
He assured him he’d just stubbed his toe on the bath edge, and finished his ablutions while willing his erection to die off, and once dressed, exited the bathroom all flustered and embarrassed, just as he’d entered, fifteen minutes prior.

Newt didn’t seem to notice, having dressed himself in black skinny jeans, a red collared shirt and black doc martens.  
Thomas had to rip his gaze away from the boy, and slap himself mentally for staring. He needed time to confirm his own feelings before he risked hurting Newt’s. He couldn’t stand himself if he did so.  
_And this is how you know you like him!_ His mind taunted, and Thomas shoved the voice away, as much as he knew it was right.

“Come on Tommy, the others are waiting, ya slow shank!” Newt called, already by the door.   
Thomas threw his suitcase shut, and headed out the door, catching a whiff of Newt’s cologne on the way out, and he felt light headed from the sensation of how _good_ he smelled, before the sterile air of the hallway hit him.  
He dumbly followed Newt to the elevator, where Minho and Teresa were waiting, staring at his ass the whole way.  
_Fuck._

-

Dinner at this self-serve all you can eat restaurant was a lot more easy-going, with a far more relaxed atmosphere. The previous night was not at all bad, but it was nice to be able to talk without reservations of being loud or rude.

Thomas was seated next to Newt, across from Aris and Harriet, with Minho and Teresa opposite Sonya, who had been assigned “bag duty” with the final seat a pile of handbags.

Newt leaned over the table conspiratorially, and made a show of loudly whispering, “Gee, who’s next to Sonya? Punching a bit above her weight innit?”  
Sonya crossed the short distance between them in an instant, and had a hand around the back of his neck.  
Newt went limp immediately, back arched, hissing.  
“Say that one more time you little shit.” She growled, fingers digging further into pressure points on the boy’s neck.  
“I didn’t say nothing!” Newt gasped, eyes wide.  
Sonya released her cousin and made a show of dusting herself off. “I thought as much.”

Thomas was wide eyed with a newfound fear for the girl. _Mental note, do not piss off Sonya._  
They took turns going up to the food stands, and loading up their plates.  
Discussions ensued over the food about the latest Star Wars movies, with Minho and Harriet doing most of the talking, with Aris popping in with supporting arguments for both sides.

It was at this point that Newt decided that Tommy was rather dense, and to make his move, he had to make it bold and crystal clear of his intentions. He considered whisking him away and pinning him against a wall, but decided against that, instead dropping his hand on Thomas’ leg, and gently rubbing circles around with his thumb, making the boy choke on his food. He could always stop him, or move away if it made him feel that uncomfortable. But given the information over the past couple of days, he was very sure about this.  
“Hey Tommy slow down, there’s a lot of food up there. You okay?” he asked, feigning concern, watching as Thomas tried in vain to ignore the hand steadily moving upwards, now on his upper thigh.   
Thomas didn’t move away, rooted to the spot, trying not to look at the shit-eating grin he knew would be on his stupid cute face.

Newt absentmindedly ate his pasta with one hand, whilst the other massaged Thomas’ thigh, enjoying the small whimpers he made every now and again, exchanging a look with Aris who snorted and dug into his steak, unable to hide the grin on his features.  
Soon enough, Newt could feel the tension in Thomas’ jeans, and ran one finger over the growing bulge.  
Thomas nearly choked on his food again, but managed to cover it by coughing this time.   
“Jeez, Newt was right, you do know you’ll get food after this, right?” Minho jibed, meanwhile inhaling his own food.  
Newt grew bolder, this time laying a flat hand over Thomas’ growing arousal, and marvelling at how it was as long as his hand, and quite thick, too.  
Fingers curling around, he began massaging, gently at first, but gripping, when it became clear that he was as hard as a rock.

Thomas put his cutlery, down, excused himself and hurriedly left for the bathrooms.  
Newt glanced up, and feigned concern again.   
“Maybe I should go check on him.” Newt declared, before following Thomas, making sure to use as much of the table as cover, to hide his own arousal.  
He took off, and the group took a collective sigh.

“Maybe now they’ll bone, and admit they like each other. Then we can get back to our holiday without sexual tension clouding everything. God, they’ve been giving each other heart eyes for _months_.” Minho whined, the others agreeing with nods.

Back in the bathroom, Newt strolled in, before finding a closed stall.  
“Tommy?” He called, and a yelp and a bang sounded, before Thomas opened the stall, and peered around the door.  
“Can I help you?”

Newt grinned, and sidled up to the door.  
“Oh, yes you can. Open that fucking door.”  
Thomas did as he was told, and pressed Newt against the cubicle wall, and had his face bare centimetres from Newt’s, their noses brushing.  
“I can’t stand this anymore. What was that, in the restaurant?” Thomas breathed, eyes boring into Newt’s own.  
“I wanted to make it perfectly clear what I feel about you.” Newt replied, sticking his chin up in defiance.  
“Fuck. I’ve been struggling with this, but I can’t anymore. Newt, I really do like you, in fact, I think-”  
Newt put a finger on Thomas’ lips, and shook his head.  
“Tommy, shut up. Kiss me.”  
And so he did.  
Gingerly at first, lips brushing, and then clashing in a torrent of want, Thomas’ hands cupping Newt’s fine jaw, before moving back to clutch at his hair, deepening the kiss when Newt’s lips parted, allowing Thomas further.  
Eventually, they had to break for air.  
“Fuck.”  
“Geez, not yet Tommy, buy me dinner first!”  
“Shut up Newt.” Thomas growled, going in for another heated kiss, this time boldly grabbing Newt’s ass as he did so, earning a pleased mewl from the blond.

Five minutes later, the two returned to the group, with ruffled hair and swollen lips. The others pretended nothing had happened, aside from exchanging small glances between them, trying to suppress laughter.  
“Finally. For fuck’s sake. Now we can relax!” Minho yelled, earning a round of applause from the others, Thomas wanting to melt, and Newt looking rather pleased with himself.


End file.
